westfield

The largest shopping centre, with 3-levels of shops and restaurants, to be opened in Britain in 2007 opened last Tuesday... in Derby.

On Thursday, we walked along the new City Rail Trail -- it's a mouthful, don't you think? -- as a slight detour home. The new road took us right into the new Westfield Centre. And when we took the escalator up, we were astonished at the number of brightly-lit shops faced upon us. Nearly simultaneously, we exclaimed, "it's like Metrotown" but only a quarter of its size. The mall didn't feel like Derby but rather some bigger metropolitan city like Nottingham or Birmingham. So, in my mind, it was a very good thing.

Much to my delight, the mall has longer hours: staying open until 7 pm on most nights and even longer hours on Thursday and Friday (until 9 pm); Sunday only opens to 4:30 but that's acceptable given that we're in England. There's now a chance to get things past 6 pm on workdays.

I was invited out to the mall again yesterday and everyone in the County of Derbyshire -- and then some more -- seemed to have the same idea. (Think: going shopping on the last Saturday before Christmas.) We only ventured into two shops, by manoeuvring ourselves through the claustrophobic corridor, before we decided to break for lunch. I politely excused myself afterwards as I couldn't bear to set foot inside again, at least until the novelty of the new mall wore off.

Why I decided to go to the mall again today is a surprise, even to me.